Letters 05-16-10

Sunday

During the past few weeks, the High Desert region paid sincere respects to two of our committed community leaders, Lee Tucker (Mr. "Red Cross") and Bill Porter (The Godfather of Real Estate).

I recently shared a conversation someone who said how important people like Mr. Tucker and Mr. Porter are to the Victor Valley. Mr. Tucker did so much for recipients and patrons of the High Desert Chapter of the American Red Cross. Mr. Porter was instrumental in the founding and growth of many High Desert agencies and institutions. As Victorville council member Terry Caldwell said of Mr. Porter, "you never heard a negative comment" about him. Both epitomized the definition of a leader.

I've been honored to work with many High Desert leaders, such a Ben Hinkle, Leonard Davis, Ron Kuch, Sam DeFazio, Tom Graning, Dr. William Oyler, Joe Watson, Val Sher and Tony Piazza. With their passing, we lose not only history but a thorough understanding of the community challenges they overcame and what changes they were instrumental in achieving.

My question today is, where are our leaders of tomorrow? Who will be participating in such organizations as the Elk's Order, Rotary, Lion's Club and the area Chambers of Commerce? My challenge to the members of our next generation who want to make a difference is to step up and be counted, and make that difference.

Joe Brady

Spring Valley Lake

It won't hold water

Re: "Blaming illegal immigrants" (Fernando Torres, Letters, May 14).

Mr. Torres is typical of those who have an opinion that doesn't hold water. The race card comes out every time, and I'm sick of it. The fact is almost all illegal aliens come from the southern border. Those illegals just happen to have brown skin. Racism has nothing to do with it.

A Los Angeles City Council member compared Arizona's new law to Nazi Germany. His comments were appalling and Jews should be outraged. The United States Attorney General Eric Holder claimed the law to be unconstitutional, then admitted that he hadn't read the law. The Arizona law mimics the federal law that Eric Holder is supposed to enforce. The lying and deceit continues and the media doesn't call these politicians on it. Come November, hopefully the American people will put them in their place.

Chad Claveau

Hesperia

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There appear to be many Democrat politicians who dislike the citizens of Arizona and the laws enacted to protect the citizens of Arizona from criminal invaders smuggling drugs and kidnapping citizens, among other crimes. Like Obama and the city councils of Los Angeles and Frisco.

I've yet to hear one Republican speak out in favor of the murder and kidnapping of any Americans. The great "uniter" is turning out to constantly be the great divider.

David Hansen

Apple Valley

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The May 13 edition of the Daily press contains an article dealing with a survey of 1,016 adults conducted May 6-9, by McClatchy-Ipsos. Some 61 percent of Americans, and 64 percent of registered voters, said they favored the Arizona immigration law. That story was on page A5. On page A3 of the same issue there was a story telling us that the Los Angeles City Council voted 13-1 to bar Los Angeles from conducting business with Arizona unless the law is repealed, and Mayor Villaraigosa has already said he will approve the boycott.

Well, it's obvious they are pandering for votes to stay in office, but here's the rub: Upon election, each and every one of them swore an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the laws of their city, county, state and nation.

In my opinion, they should all be thrown in jail. Impeachment, removal from office and disbarment from holding any future public office, at the very least, I would find acceptable.

Gabriel Portillo

Hesperia

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As long as the American flag flies with 50 stars, and Arizona remains a part of the Union, this White House administration is obligated to represent them equally with all other states, not promote and support any type of financial ban, bringing further ruin to the sum total of our economy.

Arrogant actions, such as Nancy Pelosi using the Catholic church pulpit to urge protection of illegals through boycott (separation of church and state?), only bring this country closer to a civil war and total collapse of democracy.

Carrie Jo Ashmore

Pinon Hills

Much ado about little?

Now that the infidels have stolen the cross out in the Mojave Desert, I wonder: Has it ever occurred to any of the indignant Christians who have been writing letters, as unlikely as it may be, that Jesus might care more about whether people have access to medical care than whether there is a cross out there somewhere for the coyotes to appreciate? That maybe there's a chance, albeit a very small one, that this cross thing is much ado about very little?

What part did the Mojave Desert play in World War II anyway?

Stan Brown

Victorville

Trumped up 'graduations'

My hat is off to the common sense decision by Snowline School District elementary school principals to rid their schools of a trumped up "graduation" ceremony for their students. For years, parents and educators have pushed for special recognition of their children moving from one grade to another ... certainly not the ultimate culmination of their basic education ... a high school diploma.

This touchie feelie recognition of children "graduating" from kindergarten, then elementary school, then middle school has put a false award on our students, propping them up, allowing them to think they had accomplished something they hadn't.

Now if all our schools would really put teeth back into the requirements necessary for the youth of the Victor Valley, California and America, we might bring back the greatness of America that existed in past generations.

The America who answered President Kennedy's challenge in 1961 to put a man on the moon by the end of the decade were products of an America whose high school standards produced men and women who met the challenge and continued American greatness.

Too often today, if we want to look to America's greatness, we find that young men and women from India have been needed to prop up a declining American work force which can't compute its way to the greatness that we knew 50 years ago.

Tom Pinard

Wrightwood

Welfare for felons

The California budget is going to have lot of cuts if you believe what's being reported. We all know the state is broke.

This week our esteemed state lawmakers passed a bill to give food stamps to felons. Is that really the priority for us? We have no money for existing programs, and so drug users can misuse these food stamps to buy drugs. Is that too complicated to understand for our lawmakers?

What is going to be next for felons, unemployment benefits while they are serving time in jail? God help Californians.

Raj Behal

Hesperia

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